A quick look at Thursday’s NBA playoff action...
Lakers 80 at Houston 95
Aaron Brooks scored 26 points and Luis Scola added 24 points and 12 rebounds, and undermanned Houston beat top-seeded Los Angeles 95-80 to force a Game 7 in their Western Conference semifinal series.
Reserve Carl Landry scored 15 points for Houston, which opened the game on a 17-1 run and built a 52-36 halftime lead.
Game 7 will be Sunday at the Staples Centre.
Kobe Bryant scored 32 points and Pau Gasol added 14 for Los Angeles, which lost for only the third time in the last 18 games when it had a chance to close out a series.
Celtics 75 at Magic 83
Dwight Howard had 23 points and 22 rebounds and Orlando beat Boston 83-75 to force a Game 7 in their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Rashard Lewis had 20 points, and Hedo Turkoglu hit his only three-pointer of the game to highlight a closing 11-2 run for Orlando, which hasn’t made it to the conference finals since 1996.
Rajon Rondo finished with 19 points, 16 rebounds and six assists, and Paul Pierce scored 17 points for defending champion Boston, which led by 10 points in the second half.
Game 7 is Sunday in Boston.